The Fat Lady Sings: 3 Things to Make You Smile this Weekend (April 17 to 19)

Had a rough week? Check out The Fat Lady Sings, our new weekly round-up of things that are making us smile right now.

Jessica Kane on why wearing a bathing suit as a plus-size woman is not brave
I’ve used words like “courage” and “bravery” many times when talking about being fat in public and wearing whatever the eff you want. Jessica Kane, founder of Skorch magazine, made me re-think the idea of associating wearing a bathing suit with bravery with an image she posted on Instagram this week. Check out Jodie Layne’s write-up about it. I love this particular paragraph:

“Most of all, this is frustrating to me because I agree with Kane — in the scheme of things people are dealing or struggling with, wearing clothing shouldn’t have to be something that we applaud people for. I dream of the day when this is so normal and so common that it’s not even on our radar anymore. I think we’re getting there! But, the reality is that it does still take courage for a lot of people to do simple daily things like going to a concert or the beach. Until it becomes normalized, just imagine me here silently cheering you on, babe.

Rebel Wilson slayed the red carpet (and the stage) at the MTV Movie Awards
We may as well start calling this column “3 Things Jodie Layne wrote this week to make you smile,” because girl is killing it at Bustle with her thoughtful pieces. I also love her take about Rebel Wilson coming into her own as a plus style icon. Her red carpet look at the MTV Awards was STUNNING.

Rebel Wilson on the red carpet at the MTV Movie Awards.

Also, the moment she strutted onstage in a bedazzled bra and leather leggings with “THINK” printed across her butt was beyond flawless. From MTV: “I like to encourage girls to think, which is why I put that on my butt. It’s really about what’s up here [points to head], and not whats here [points to backside].”

Pink and Chrissy Teigen stand up for body positivity
In other body-positive celebrity news, Pink shut down haters on Twitter after she stepped out and received all kinds of comments about her weight. Let’s get straight to her response:

“While I admit that that dress didn’t photograph as well as it did in my kitchen, I will also admit that I felt very pretty. In fact, I feel beautiful. So, my good and concerned peoples, please don’t worry about me. I’m not worried about me. And I’m not worried about you either:)… I am perfectly fine, perfectly happy, and my healthy, voluptuous and crazy strong body is having some much deserved time off. Thanks for your concern. Love, cheesecake.”

Meanwhile, model Chrissy Teigen was praised for posting a selfie on Instagram that prominently featured her bruised legs (from bumping into drawers) and stretch marks. As much as I respect people’s decisions to do whatever the hell they want to their own pictures before posting them, seeing an unedited celeb image like this once in awhile is pretty refreshing.

Chatelaine‘s real talk about “real” women
My pal and co-worker Katie did a great write-up this week about why Lane Bryant’s #ImNoAngel campaign falls short. We had an awesome discussion about the campaign before she did this write-up, and I think she did a fantastic job tackling the problem of referring to women as “real.” (Full disclosure: I work for Chatelaine and I’m proud of the work we do!) A standout passage:

“If this Lane Bryant campaign is to be believed, you’re only a card-carrying real woman if you’ve got ample T&A to back it up. What about flat-chested women? Women with bony butts? Transgendered women? Women who’ve had Botox? Women with disabilities? Women “of a certain age”? Where do we draw the line between real and … not?”

I also love Amanda Richards‘ #ImNoModelEither campaign, which she started in response to Lane Bryant’s hashtag. Check out her unedited pics and empowering message in this interview with Bustle:

“It would have been much more compelling if the message was strong, bold and maybe even a little tongue-in-cheek — but didn’t pit one group of women against another.”